Talk:BEP Shaft Rescue Robot (2022/2023, Q3)

Research Section on Topic

Past Accidents

Thai baby who fell down well rescued https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-64553751

• 13m deep shaft and 30cm wide gap
• An adjacent tunnel had to be dug up in order to save the boy
• Oxygen was supplied to the tunnel

Boy rescued after 100 hours trapped underground in a well https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cwqsa9VkTQg

• 18m deep well
• An adjacent tunnel had to be dug up in order to save the boy
• Oxygen was supplied to the tunnel

Madhya Pradesh: Indian boy trapped in a well https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-63928144

• 17m deep well
• Trapped for 3 days. Again the solution was to dig a parallel hole
• The rocky layer seemed to pose complications on digging the parallel tunnel

Moroccan boy, Rayan, 5, trapped in 105-feet-deep well, found dead after four-day rescue effort https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2022/02/05/moroccan-boy-rescue-fourth-day-effort-free-5-year-old-well/6674664001/

• 105 feet deep well
• The solution was to dig a parallel hole to the well
• They sent down water as well as cameras to monitor the condition of the boy
• It seemed challenging to determine the condition of the boy therefore they kept digging.

Spain toddler stuck in deep borehole https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-46862385

• In this case the hole is 100m deep and just 25cm wide.
• This posed the problem that no one could actually fit through the hole, only a camera to locate the boy
• Again the best solution they used was to dig a parallel hole, which takes very long

Killer borewells: Recent cases of children falling into deadly holes https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/killer-borewells-recent-cases-of-children-falling-into-deadly-holes/articleshow/92232243.cms

• Cases of children falling into borewell holes dating back to 2006 up to 2022
• Rescue operations could take 9 up to 109 hours, and even then they were not always successful
• Children were aged 1.5 up to 9 years old
• Hole depths ranged from 55 to 440 ft (16.764 to 134.112 m)
• Rescue methods included digging a pit parallel to where the child was trapped using large excavators (up to 40 in one instance).
• Saving these children could often require a team consisting of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) team army, fire brigade, police and health officials.
• Geological obstacles included huge rocks or slab which would have to be broken up in order to dig a pit down to where the child was
• Oxygen would be pumped to the holes during rescue missions, but no food could be sent down

Boy, 10, declared dead after falling into 115-feet deep construction site hole in Vietnam https://www.cbsnews.com/news/boy-who-fell-into-115-feet-deep-construction-site-hole-in-vietnam-declared-dead/

• After 100 soldiers spent almost 100 hours a 10 year old boy could not be saved after being trapped for 5 days
• The hole was 10 inches (25.4 cm) wide and 115 ft (35.052 m) deep
• Rescuers attempted to use a 62-foot metal pipe to rescue the boy while oxygen was being pumped into the hole

'Boy falls into hole made for building in Vadodara https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/boy-falls-into-hole-made-for-bldg-rescued/articleshow/96657142.cms/

• 20ft (6m) deep hole
• Rescuers had to dig a parallel hole in order to save the boy.
• Rescue operation was less complicated compared to other situations as the hole was less deep.

Infant Girl Rescued from DANGEROUS Well Shaft in Thailand https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EwNHVP34C8U&ab_channel=OnDemandNews

• When digging holes, rescue workers have to be very careful to avoid letting the shaft collapse or letting debris fall in

Rescue 911: Small Boy vs. Deep Hole https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THnTA6Of0qM&ab_channel=brokkenp

• The more people get inovlved and look into the hole where the child is, the more dust gets kicked in accidentally and covers the child
• Water can rise at the bottom and make it harder to dig
• It can be very hard to accurately dig the horizontal hole to the child
  • If the child's location is measured incorrectly from the ground level, the hole could miss them

Baby Jessica rescued from a well as the world watches https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/baby-jessica-rescued-from-a-well-as-the-world-watches

• October 16, 1987
• Rescued by digging parallel + horizontal tunnel
• Rescue operation took 58 hours
• 20 cm well casing, approximately 6.7m below grade
• Good example of worldwide attention to such cases, proving the impact we can make

Texas Rescuers Work 6+ Hours To Save Little Boy Who Fell Down 44-Foot Deep Well https://www.cbsnews.com/dfw/news/texas-rescue-4-year-old-boy-fell-down-well/

• December 10, 2020
• 25cm wide and 13.5m deep well
• Kid got stuck 9m below the ground level
• Saved by digging a parallel tunnel
• Operation took 6 hours

Problems With Current Rescue Methods

Explained: How borewell rescues are attempted, why they often fail https://indianexpress.com/article/explained/explained-how-borewell-rescues-are-attempted-why-they-often-fail-6094949/#:~:text=Most%20commonly%2C%20a%20parallel%20hole,rescue%20workers%20and%20heavy%20machinery. Alternative source with no subscription required:

https://theprint.in/theprint-essential/why-borewell-deaths-are-so-frequent-and-rescue-measures-fall-short-most-of-the-time/313215/

• On average, 70% of rescue operations are unsuccessful
• Borewells are wells that can be 100-1500 feet deep and fit pipes of 6-12 inches in diameter in order to extract water to irrigate land
• Key factors that affect the rescue mission's chance of success include:
  • Incident type
  • Location
  • Depth and diameter of borehole
  • Availability of equipment for digging, oxygen, doctors, ambulances and lights
  • Type of soil
• Problems with digging a parallel hole and diging a horizontal hole to the hole where the child is:
  • Needs large amounts of resources (rescue workers, machines)
  • Too time-consuming
  • Hard rocks can get in the way of the digging and cause delays

Similarities between researched cases

• Location :
  • Majority of cases occur in southern Asia (India, Thailand, ....)
• Type of hole:
  • Borehole used for construction or to reach a well.
• Method of rescue:
  • Supplying oxygen through a long pipe, digging a parallel hole.
  • Supplying food/Water is not possible in most cases. Either the hold is too small or the victim is wounded/unconscious.
• Victim:
  • A child between 2-12 years old.

Existing procedure on Bore well Incident Response

https://ndrf.gov.in/sites/default/files/SOP%20BOREWELL.pdf

• File created by the National Disaster Response Force, Government of India [2018-2019]
  
• The purpose of this 28 page document is to establish the procedure for the response of the rescue team for bore well incident. The Standard Operation Procedure (SOP) prescribes guidelines and assigns responsibility for adopting various executive actions to ensure prompt response during incident.
  
• The main objectives of SOP are:

1. Guidelines for troops for rescue operation during the bore well incident.
2. Achievement of best result through well planned rescue operations.
3. Reducing reaction time of the teams in responding to such incidents.
4. Coordinating and collaborative instructions during bore well incident.